Stephen Christopher Sales, of the 400 block of Danielle Drive in Bushkill Township, surrendered today and was arraigned before District Judge Joseph Barner.

Sales is charged with homicide by vehicle, homicide by vehicle while under the influence, involuntary manslaughter, drunken driving, reckless endangerment, failure to have passengers restrained and several other traffic violations, including speeding.

Police say Sales crashed his blue Mazda3 about 3:20 a.m. Dec. 20 on Route 22 East at mile-marker 329 in Bethlehem Township, Pa. Brett Christian Kline, 21, of the 100 block of Ann Street in Easton, was thrown from the vehicle and pronounced dead at 4:17 a.m. at St. Luke's University Hospital in Fountain Hill.

A state trooper on patrol early that morning was traveling on the westbound side of the highway when he noticed a cloud of smoke in the opposite lane and slowing traffic, court papers say. The trooper responded to the crash and was told by dispatch that witnesses had reported seeing a body on the ground outside of the vehicle, according to court documents.

The state trooper said he ran to Kline's side as he was lying on the pavement. Court papers indicate Kline had suffered a head injury, his eyes were partially opened and his breathing was labored, and that he was unresponsive to first responders.

Police say Sales was nearby crying and shouting Kline's name. Authorities loaded Kline into an ambulance and rushed him to the hospital, court papers say, while officers interviewed Sales, who said he'd been driving.

Sales' speech was slurred, his eyes were glassy and his breath smelled of alcohol, court papers say. He told police he'd been traveling about 65 to 70 mph and had been changing lanes when his car "slid out" and hit an embankment, court papers say. Sales said he didn't think he struck the center median of the highway, court papers say.

Police say the Mazda sustained front- and rear-end damage. Sales admitted to having been drinking earlier in the night, records say, telling police he had four beers between 11 p.m. and midnight at a Lehigh Valley bar. He told police he was wearing a seat belt at the time of the wreck, court records say.

Police say Sales failed field sobriety tests and had trouble following instructions for a breath test. He was taken to St. Luke's University Hospital in Fountain Hill for a blood draw that showed Sales' blood-alcohol content was 0.15, records say; penalties begin for most drivers at 0.08.

Authorities investigating the crash said they found an open backpack inside the vehicle as well as a boxed case of Yuengling Lager. Only one unopened beer remained in the case, according to court records.

Sales was sent to Northampton County Prison in lieu of $50,000 bail.

His attorney Victor Scomillio, with whom Sales reported to district court this afternoon, declined to comment. Sales' preliminary hearing is set for 9:30 a.m. April 25.